Pedestrians in Livingston County? Really? But this is truck country…
Just because Liv Co has grown into a car-centric community doesn’t mean it has to stay like that! As it stands with our crumbling pedestrian infrastructure though, walking, running, pushing a stroller and rolling a wheelchair are all difficult, if not impossible. Large sections of our major roads lack sidewalks and many of the sidewalks we do have are uneven and falling apart.
Meanwhile, vehicles are expensive and their prices are only going up.
They can rival the cost of rent or a mortgage in many cases. If you don’t own a car in Livingston County, with all the associated maintenance costs, you’re out of luck. We have great assets in our community like LETS and other private carriers, but they run on set schedules and aren’t nearly as convenient as owning a car. But what if Livingston County were more walkable? What if you could walk to the grocery store? What if our children could walk to school?
Park and…walk?
It’s a sad irony that we’re blessed with wonderful parks here, but so many of us in Livingston County have to pack up and get in a car and drive (often on the highway) to get to these safe places for a walk or a run. Or to walk the dogs. Or to get the kids outside. So much extra fuel, so much wasted time driving! Our infrastructure is broken and disconnected. Our neighborhoods aren’t connected to each other or the resources and recreation opportunities they need to thrive. All we have is crumbling patchwork roads and uneven sidewalks. We need to do better and GLC – HFF is working to raise awareness and funding to make connections from where we live to where we work, play, and stay.
In particular, GLC – HFF is focusing on Livingston County-oriented implementations of Complete Streets and Safe Routes to School. Both of these will help develop a robust, interconnected non-motorized active mobility network within the county so people can get around without relying on cars. More info about these can be found on our resource tab under education. Join our efforts and make Liv Co safer for us and future generations.